What It Feels Like to Burn
by zukoshotpants
Summary: Katara has confusing feelings about certain events in her life, and when Zuko tries to talk to her about it, interesting things happen and by interesting things, I mean sexy things . Rated M for severe sexytimes and puns about firebending. smutsmutsmut. There's a second chapter now! Katara tries to get the upper hand, and Appa gets put into an uncomfortable situation.
1. Chapter 1

There's really not much introduction I can give to this, other than 1. yes I know I already wrote a story in which Zuko and Katara talk about how Aang kissed her, 2. But this one ends in sexytimes 3. I apologize for writing sexytimes, but it just happened? 4. So many fire puns oh god I'm so sorry 5. But who doesn't want Zutara sexytimes I mean COME ON.

* * *

He kissed her.

Katara still thought about it, even though it had been weeks ago. Right before the invasion, Aang had _kissed _her.

Something about it made her stomach churn uncomfortably. She wasn't even sure why; there was _nothing_ wrong with Aang. In fact, there was pretty much everything _right_ with him; he was funny, kind of cute, and being the Avatar didn't exactly hurt, but...

There was just something _off_ about it, something she couldn't quite place her finger on.

The breeze fluttered the flaps of her tent, and she shivered, pulling her limbs closer to her. She grew up in the coldest place in the world, yet she couldn't sleep with that cold air blowing on her.

Whether it really was the cold air making her sleepless or not, she wasn't exactly sure.

Nevertheless, she pulled her blanket more tightly around her and tried to drift off to sleep. Unfortunately, as little as the tents were windproof, they were equally soundproof. That was to say, not soundproof at all.

"Hey, stop it, Sokka..." _giggle_.

"Mmm, come here you little..." _more giggles. _

Katara growled and stuffed her fingers in her ears. She scooched over to the other side of the tent to avoid the scuffling in the tent beside her, but was to little avail.

After a while, the giggling seemed to settle down and stop entirely, and Katara was beginning to think she could actually sleep, until,

"Oh, _Sokka_..."

"URGH!" Katara slammed her hand down on the ground and got up, storming out of her tent, unable to listen anymore. She stalked all the way down to the edge of the lake and sat down defeatedly, her messy hair still in her eyes. Grumbling, she brushed it away and tried to relax as she watched the water push and pull at the lake's edge.

_Aang kissed her_.

It wasn't fair, Katara thought bitterly. It wasn't fair that he had kissed her and left her there, confused and bewildered. It wasn't fair that he hadn't _mentioned_ it since. And it wasn't fair that _it wasn't right_.

Listening to Sokka and Suki night after night had started to get to her, she thought. _Why can't I have that_? The laughs, the shared secrets, the _passion_...

Of course, the matter of passion between her brother and his girlfriend was a matter Katara wanted nothing more than to forget. And she needed to remember, Sokka was _older _than she was.

_Only by a year_.

Whatever it was Katara wanted, it wasn't Aang, that much was clear to her. She sighed.

She was still cold.

"Not tired?"

The voice startled Katara and she jumped nearly half a foot in the air.

"I'm plenty tired," she said, her arms across her chest. "Other people who _aren't _tired are keeping me up. That's all."

"Is it?" Zuko's voice remained behind her, low and raspy.

"You snuck up on me."

"You would have heard me if you were listening."

"You..." Katara found herself at a loss for what to say, and faltered pitifully. "What do you want?"

"I don't know." he said.

"You don't know?" Katara scoffed.

"Can I sit down?"

"Sure. Plenty of grass for everyone."

Katara didn't look up, but saw his pointed boots next to her, and soon the rest of Zuko followed as he sat down next to her.

"Something's on your mind." It wasn't a question.

You're quite the observer."

Zuko looked at her. She looked at him too, from the corner of her eye, her head still bowed down.

"You don't need to tell me what's going on," he said, "but it's getting the better of you, whatever it is. You're getting all...frazzled."

"I am not frazzled!" Katara yelled, completely frazzled. "Just...ugh." her palm hit her forehead. "Sorry. I guess I am."

"I know," was all Zuko said before he took his eyes of Katara and looked out at the water. From this side, all Katara could see was pale, white skin. No scar, no sliver of an eye, no burn marks. Just the face of a boy.

Katara sighed.

"Zuko?" she asked. "Have you ever, uh...kissed anyone?"

"Yeah." was his raspy reply. He turned his head to look at her again. "Why?"

She didn't even know if she should tell him. But she supposed it was too late now, so she took a deep breath.

"Aang...kissed me a few weeks ago." she told him slowly.

"I know."

"You...what? You know?"

"He told me." he noticed her shivering. "Are you cold?"

"Why did he...yes? I'm..."

Like a shadow Zuko had moved, and Katara couldn't say another word before his cloak was draped over her shoulders.

"Oh," she said uncertainly. "Thanks."

"He said it was the happiest moment of his life."

"He...Aang? Aang said that?"

"No, Appa said that." Irritation crept into his voice. "Of course Aang said it."

Katara's head was swimming. The kiss, the cloak, Aang, _Zuko_...

"Why did he tell you?"

"I don't know." Zuko shrugged. "Why did _you_ tell me?"

His eyes pierced her. _Eyes like fire_.

"Because you're sitting here and I'm sitting here and..." Katara sighed, finally dropping her pretense of annoyance. "And I'm confused."

"About Aang."

"I shouldn't be. Right?" Katara asked. "He's a great kid, really. He's funny and...and sweet, and..."

"You said kid."

"I...I did?"

"He's a great kid, you said. And you're right. He is a great kid."

Katara nodded.

"But he's just a kid." Zuko pressed. "That's why you're confused. You spend every night listening to your brother and his girlfriend doing all the things kids shouldn't be doing, but person who kissed you is just a kid."

"I guess that's it," Katara looked away, feeling ashamed, because Zuko was right.

He was just a kid.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, no sound but the water lapping at the edge.

"Who have you kissed?" Katara asked, although she wasn't sure why. There was something intriguing about the matter, and she didn't want to ask herself why that was.

"Mai." was all Zuko said. Something about the way he said it made Katara feel like he didn't really want to talk about it. "And a few others."

"Hmm." Katara didn't know how to respond to that. She remembered Mai, the girl with the knives. She felt her stomach twist again, but she was certain that was only because Mai had tried to _kill_ her, or something like it. Katara pulled Zuko's cloak around her as the wind sharpened, and couldn't help but wonder if Mai had ever been inside.

"Sometimes," Katara found herself admitting, "I'm just filled with so much...frustration."

Zuko raised an eyebrow in interest, signaling her to go on.

"Sometimes I just want to _feel_ something like that. I don't even know what _that_ is. But whatever it is...I keep thinking I need it." she looked up at Zuko. "Like a burning feeling. Inside. Does that make sense?"

"Perfect sense," were the last words from Zuko's mouth before his mouth was suddenly on hers.

Katara let out a muffled yelp of surprise, and Zuko pulled away.

"What are you doing?" she squeaked, her heart hammering. "I tell you Aang kissed me and I was confused and then _you kiss me_? What were you thinking?"

"Katara, I'm sorry, I..."

But he didn't have time to say anything, because all of the sudden, Katara was kissing him back.

A few seconds later, she stopped and opened her eyes, their faces still very close.

"What am _I _thinking?" she whispered.

"I know what you're thinking," Zuko offered in her ear, kissing her earlobe gently.

"What?"

"_It's fun to play with fire_."

Katara felt herself go weak at those words, and then she was kissing him again, entranced by the way he traced his tongue around her lips and teased the opening of her mouth.

She understood the burning feeling. She understood it because it was consuming her, and it made her want Zuko everywhere; on her lips, in her hair, _everywhere_.

Back at the tents, the fire was flickering.

Zuko broke away from her lips to kiss her neck, slowly, achingly slowly, his hands running up and down her torso. Something between her legs throbbed.

"Oh," she uttered in surprise at the feeling. Zuko smirked against her neck and put his hands on her shoulders, pressing her down on the ground. He slid himself over her, his ragged breath warm on her skin. He played with her hair and hovered over her face, but he did not kiss her. Slowly he positioned his body on top of hers, and Katara lay there, her chest heaving, waiting for something...

And something pressed between her legs, something warm, something _impossibly good_, something so impossibly good that Katara couldn't take it anymore, whatever it was, and wrapped her arms and legs so fiercely around Zuko that they couldn't physically be any closer, and she kissed him with all the hunger she never realized she'd had. Zuko kissed back, almost ferociously, his teeth biting at her lips, his breath hot and short.

And he was still holding back.

"_Zuko..."_ Katara let his name drag from her lips, and she could feel him shudder on top of her, the weight of his body pressing down on her in the worst and best way.

A frenzy had overcome her. Her hands were in his hair, on his neck, on his back, nails digging into him. She realized she was moaning, and the realization made her cheeks flush.

"Don't stop that," Zuko told her, his hands running everywhere but her chest.

"Make me," was her reply. Zuko gave her a wicked look and pinned her hands above her head.

He was so strong. So strong and fierce. His skin burned.

The campfire flared.

Zuko placed slow, careful, and tantalizing kisses all over Katara's neck. As much as she wanted to let it out, Katara glued her mouth shut. His hips pressed into hers; Katara had never realized until that moment just how wonderful, how _delicious_ a person's hips could be, how delicious Zuko's hips felt pressing into her.

And then he slowly started rotating them, allowing her to _feel_ everything, every crevice and...Katara swallowed..._bulge_.

For a second Katara's mind wandered. Of couse she had _seen_...them, but only in medical cases, she had never _really_ seen one, or...touched one. The thought certainly made her a little nervous, but then _it pressed up against her_, and wave of pleasure rushed over her, and one betraying moan escaped her lips.

"_There it is,"_ Zuko breathed, letting her hands go and kissing and biting at her lips again. His hands travelled to her breasts, which he took and squeezed hard, so hard it almost hurt.

"_Zuko_," Katara said again, and he broke away from her lips and looked deeply into her eyes. "_Teach me what it feels like to burn_."

Something in Zuko's eyes burst with a wild passion at those words, and he was on her again, but this time, he wasn't holding _anything _back. His fingertips were singeing her clothes but she didn't care. He picked her up off the ground only to slam her against a tree, pressing his thigh up between her legs. Katara moaned again, and the water started to flush faster against the water's edge.

Zuko reached a hand between her legs and started rubbing, Katara nearly buckled for the sensation. It spread all the way to her fingers; maybe that's what made her reach for the bulge in Zuko's pants.

For the first time, a raspy moan escaped his lips, and it was the sweetest sound Katara had ever heard.

Somehow, Zuko knew _exactly _where to touch her. Soon, his hot fingers slipped underneath her dress and into her leggings and he was _there_, on her skin, _in..._

She gasped as he slid two fingers deftly inside her. Her grasp on Zuko tightened at the feeling, and he let out another stifled moan.

Everything blurred. Fire spread inside her. The tree dug into her back but she didn't care, Zuko's body was all she cared about, Zuko and his fingers and his ragged breath and the way he looked into her eyes with that wicked smirk. She slipped her hand underneath his tunic and into his pants as he had done to her, and as he stroked inside her, she did what she could to him.

"Ohh," he groaned, biting Katara's shoulder. "Do that harder." she did, and she felt him throb in response. He continued to pump his fingers in and out of her, his thumb rubbing the same place he was before.

"Oh, Zuko," Katara gasped, suddenly feeling like she was on the edge of something. "Z..."

"Shh," he whispered in her ear. _"You're close."_

Katara's vision went blurry, all of her senses faded away as the intense pleasure began to take over her body. She was vaguely aware of Zuko biting and moaning at her touches, but she couldn't...think...not...

"Ohhh...!" she screamed, the sensation of pleasure _exploding_ from between her legs. Zuko's tongue was in her mouth and she bucked and writhed at the release.

"Kata...ra...don't...stop..." was all Zuko said as she nearly drew her hand away. The feeling had nearly taken away her ability to stand, but her head fell against his shoulder and she continued.

Zuko was sweating, his body overcome with heat. His face gritted and grunts escaped his lips every stroke Katara dealt him. From the corner of her eye, she could see the once small campfire blazing larger and larger.

"Oh _god_," Zuko hissed into her neck, his body starting to buck. He moaned again, and again, each time with increasing volume and urgency, until he gave one last, loud, shuddering groan and exploding everything he had into Katara's waiting hand.

Sparks rained from the sky.

"God, Katara," he said weakly, panting. He laughed and kissed her a little sloppily, and fell to the ground. She fell next to him, laying her head on his hammering chest.

"That was amazing," she breathed. "Only, there's one problem."

"What?"

"The tents are on fire."

"What?" his eyes flew wide open. "Shit."

"We're under attaaack!" Sokka yelled, running out his tent, his arms above his head. "The Fire Nation is upon us! Everybody put your clothes on!"

"We're under attack?" Aang poked his head out of his tent and saw the flames. He gasped. "Oh no!" putting out the fire with a burst of air, he saw Katara and Zuko coming up the hill. "Katara! Zuko! Did you see them?"

"Them?" Zuko asked, yawning.

"The firebenders! They set fire to our tents."

"Oh, them! Yeah, they went, ah, that way." Zuko pointed to his left. "We fought them off. I don't think they're coming back."

"They got you!" Aang looked at Katara's clothes, singed with holes. She turned red.

"I'm okay, Aang." she said. "Man, fighting all those firebenders sure made me tired. Time for bed."

And with that, she pushed past Aang and went into her tent. Before she shut the flaps, she looked at Zuko, who gave her one sly smile before he disappeared into his tent.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed my first foray into the world of smutfic aaah. Maybe next time there will be less fire puns, but I WILL MAKE NO SUCH PROMISES.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you all so much for the lovely reviews on the first chapter! This story was originally just a one shot, but because people seemed to like it, I decided to do another chapter! Weee. In any case, here's a second chapter, in which Zuko and Katara engage in sexytimes again, Katara finds herself trying to gain the upper hand, and Appa gets put into an uncomfortable situation. Enjoy! :)

* * *

It was that time of night again. Darkness had blanketed the camp, and Sokka's snores could be heard emitting from his tent. Katara poked her head out of her own tent, and surveyed the area.

No one was around.

Seizing the opportunity, she crept quietly into the open air and slunk into Zuko's tent- but he wasn't there.

Katara frowned. It had become a nightly ritual, and even though they never spoke of it, it was _a rule_ that Zuko was supposed to be in his tent when Katara called. Annoyed, Katara stepped back outside. Where _was_ he?

It was the same thing every night. Very few words, but a whole lot of mouth. Maybe they were seeking silent refuge in each other, or maybe they were just bored, but Katara had never known refuge or boredom like this.

"_Zuko_?" she hissed, but there wasn't an answer. She caught movement from the corner of her eye, but it was just Aang, rolling over on one of Appa's legs. When you were an Air Nomad, a sky bison was an appropriate place to sleep, apparently.

And then...was it rustling, she heard?

Her attention was directed to Appa's saddle, which they normally emptied every night. But Katara was certain there was a _shape_ in there, shifting about this way and that. _Zuko_.

Trying to figure out what the hell Zuko was doing hanging out in Appa's saddle in the middle of the night, Katara crept around Aang and climbed up onto the bison's back.

"Bored again?" Zuko asked when she stepped into the saddle. He was leaning back, his arms crossed behind his head.

"Why are you up here?"

He shrugged.

"I got bored too."

Katara nearly fell onto him, showering his face with kisses and touches and stifled sounds of enamor. Zuko smirked under her lips and kissed her back, only if to quiet her down.

"Shhhh," he urged, lifting his hands to her hair. "_You don't want to wake Aang."_

For some reason, that sent a flutter within Katara that started between her legs. She giggled, and felt Zuko smirk again in the dark. Stretching a leg over her lap, Katara positioned herself so that she was on top of him, and planted slow kisses on his waiting lips. Zuko shifted his hips and pulled Katara closer. His hands reached around and grabbed her by the rear, and Katara released his lips to kiss down his neck.

She could barely see him, but she could feel Zuko's heat in the darkness, his breath shudderingly hot and his skin burning. Katara kissed him again, and while she _wanted_ to tease him, while she _wanted_ to make him whine and moan underneath her, she didn't have it in her to be patient. Their kisses grew fierce, and both lost the strength to hold back. And when Katara dug her hips into Zuko, he let out a gasp so loud, Appa shifted in his sleep.

"Maybe we should move," Katara whispered. She felt Zuko shake his head. Even though she could barely see his eyes, she swore she could see a mischievous glint flicker over them.

"Dunno, I've never done it on a sky bison's back before."

Katara felt a shudder course through her body at his raspy words, and found herself at the mercy of his mouth again. Zuko, teeth at her lips and tongue in her mouth, wrapped two arms around her and pulled her _closer_.

Katara's breath became thick in her throat, nothing more than an inconvenience. Her hips beginning to grind against Zuko's on their own accord, and her fingers raked his hair.

_Oh, spirits_, she gasped, finding the bulge in Zuko's pants right between her legs. Zuko let out a low hiss. He needed this as much as Katara did, he was burning just as much as _she_ was. His frustration was nearly audible; barely stifled groans escaped his lips as he shoved Katara's hips against his again, harder.

_No, I'm in control this time_, Katara willed, pulling her hips away from the desperate firebender beneath her. _You need me as much as I need you_. Zuko grunted, panting, needing. He seized Katara by the front of shirt and yanked her down, but Katara resisted playfully, reclining back so she was upright. Slowly, she started to undo her dress, and Zuko let out another impatient hiss. _Wait_.

"_Katara_..."

Her dress fell around her waist, her breasts bared. She felt a throb surge from Zuko's pants, and he reached for her. Katara fell, kissing him, their tongues dancing, but her fingers teased, doing a different dance _almost where Zuko wanted her to be, _but not quite.

Appa made a low growl in his sleep, and the saddle jerked a little. Katara's heart quickened. _They could get caught. Aang could see them, Sokka...and hell, Toph had probably known what was going on for ages. _

Zuko's hips bucked, reaching, yearning for deeper contact. Her eyes had become used to the dark, and she could see him now, his eyebrows knotted in frustration. _The best kind_, she knew.

But Zuko wasn't one to lay back and hope that what he wanted would be given to him. With all the strength he had, he gripped Katara in his arms and flipped her over, tearing the rest of her dress of her body. Katara reached up and blindly grappled with his tunic, wrenching it off of him, baring his chest. After that, there was no more teasing, there was no more deliberation, there were only lips and hands and teeth and moans, and Katara could barely tell whose was whose anymore. The saddle's ridge dug uncomfortably in her back, but she was past caring. Zuko tasted like smoke and sweat, and that was all that mattered.

His skin slipped over hers, and Katara realized that she had missed the part when they had both shed all of their clothes.

Katara's lips pulled at Zuko's, but suddenly they were gone. They found her breasts, then her stomach, and then...

Katara let out a gasp as Zuko's tongue found her wetness. _Spirits_.

Deft and clever, his tongue flicked over _just the right spot _and Katara moaned, not quietly. Appa made a sleepy, disgruntled noise.

Hands fisted in his hair, Katara's hips bucked and cried for more. His tongue was hot, and Katara could feel the burning pleasure building. She opened her lips and begged for more. Zuko's hands were firm on her thighs, but at the sound of her pleasure, he let out a breath of hot air between her legs and slid a hand there. One finger slid up inside her, and then two. Katara moaned again, legs gripping Zuko, pulling him closer, _closer._

And then, quick as a shadow, Zuko was at her lips again, the taste of her lingering on his mouth. She felt him between her legs, hard and waiting.

"Are you ready?" he murmured into her ear. She nodded blindly; now _she_ was the one panting and needing. Zuko pulled on her earlobe with his lips as he slid himself inside her, and Katara shuddered deeply, nails digging into his muscled back.

"Ohhh..." Katara let loose a moan louder than all the rest, and Zuko stifled her with his tongue.

"_Don't wake the bison_," he said, his words punctuated with groans. His thrusts were deep and powerful, and with each one, Katara only wanted to scream louder.

_We could get caught_, she thought again, the idea thrilling her. Aang was feet away; what would he think to find the girl he thought he loved, being fucked like this on top of his own bison? _Spirits, oh spirits._

Zuko's hands kneaded her breasts, and she could feel drops of sweat beading on his forehead. It felt too good, too good, too...

"_Zuko_," she gasped, more loudly than she would have liked, and she finished with a crash, shuddering and exhausting, _but so sweet. _

Zuko wasn't far behind. With a massive groan he released, spending himself inside her before he collapsed. Katara bent what he had shot into her back out, and panted into his shoulder.

"Is someone up there?"

Aang's voice startled them both, and looking at each other with wild eyes, they collected as many of their clothes as they could before hightailing it off the saddle, jumping down onto the opposite side of where Aang was.

Katara half ran, half stumbled, giggling, her hand tight in Zuko's. He was sniggering too, and that sound alone nearly made Katara's heart burst. Of all the sounds Zuko had made that night, surely that one was the sweetest.

They stopped running once they knew they were out of sight, and after they had redressed, Zuko pressed his forehead to Katara's.

"What are we doing?" he asked. Katara balked a little, Zuko hadn't asked her anything of the sort before. Ever since that first time, on the grass, they hadn't said a word about it.

"I don't know," Katara admitted. "Something amazing."

Zuko smiled softly.

"I guess so," he said, taking her hands. He kissed her forehead, and Katara found she was surprised at the gesture. It seemed so...simple, so...sweet. _Maybe it's more than just this. Maybe it always has been._

The next day, Aang was going around and asking everyone "_why on earth did I find Zuko's tunic impaled on one of Appa's horns."_

Zuko only turned a little red and babbled some about how he was trying to do laundry and it got away from him, and Katara could only watch him, her heart breaking for how suddenly sweet he seemed.

_It's definitely more than this._

* * *

And there's that! This chapter takes place a good while after the first chapter, so Zuko and Katara have had time to get plenty of sexytimes in. At this point, they're both sort of thinking that it's more about just sexytimes. Similarly, I am thinking that this story, which once was just about sexytimes, is going to get away from me a bit, so keep watching for a possible update! Thanks for reading, and thanks for the lovely reviews/favorites/watches, you guys are super great. :)

Also I'm sorry for dragging Appa in this one, but Zuko and Katara getting it on in the saddle was just too good of a thing for me to pass up.


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